Roast Tomato Soup & Garlic Cheese Toastie

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Depending on the size of the tomatoes cut them into halves or quarters, or if using cherry tomatoes you can leave them whole. Place on a large baking tray, drizzle with 3 tbsp olive oil and season with salt & pepper. Place in the oven to roast for 30 minutes until softened and slightly blistered.

Add the remaning 1 tbsp of olive oil to large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and saute for 5 minutes until soft and translucent. Add the garlic and continue cooking for a minute until fragrant.

Reserve some of the blistered tomatoes for garnish, then add the remaining tomatoes and their juices to the pot along with the vegetable stock and basil. Stir to combine and let simmer for 10 minutes. Using an immersion blender, carefully blitz the tomato soup until smooth and creamy. Season to taste with salt & pepper.

Leave to gently simmer over a very low heat while you make the toasties.

To make the toasties, cut the Cottage Lane Garlic Batard Loaf into thick slices, so that you have roughly 12 slices.

Combine the softened butter, basil & garlic and spread a generous spoonful on each slice of bread. With the garlic butter on the outside, load each toasted sandwich with a mix of cheddar and mozzarella cheese.

Grill in a large fry pan over medium heat or in a sandwich press until crisp and golden and the cheese is melted.

Ladle the soup into bowls and top with a drizzle of sour cream, some of the reserved roasted tomatoes and a sprinkle of basil. Serve with the cheesy garlic toasties on the side for dipping!